Rear brake stuck

[phil]

Hello all,

Im sure this has been covered before but:-
Took car from garage last weekend (handbrake not on whilst in garage) went up drive about 20 yards, put brakes on and the offside rear brake locked on. Jacked it up, removed wheel, tapped drum and freed it off. Its just happened again, is there any way I can prevent this from happening again, any new parts etc?
Phil

[4129R]

The wheel cylinder which pushes the shoes apart is supposed to slide respective to the back plate.

I suggest you take the whole drum apart, clean it, put Copperslip on the wheel cylinder where it slides, and carefully put it back together again.

When you take the drum off, take a photo so you know how it goes back together. The spring position is tricky.

[jbcollier]

It's either the cable or the mech in the drum itself (including sticking cylinder as outlined by Mr. 4129R.

So:

Jack up the car and support it on jack stands.  Remove the offending wheel.  Apply the hand brake and mark where the lever at the drum goes to.  Release and check if the lever has moved back.  If it hasn't moved back, push it back manually.  Still stuck?  Strip the BOTH rear brakes and clean lube everything as per manual.

Usually though, it's the cable.  If it looks ok (not rusty, nor the sheathing broken up) buy a motor cycle cable oiler, push gear-oil in, and work it back and forth until it's free.  If it is rusted and/or the sheathing is broken up and/or still seized, you'll have to replace the cable.

[phil]

Thanks 4129R and JB Collier,

I will get stuck in at the weekend and report back, hopefully just the cylinder.

Regards

[rjbaren]

I am not an expert, but maybe it has nothing to do with the parking brake at all.  Could it possibly be the flex hose at that wheel may have swelled internally and won't let the fluid return?  Maybe replace that hose and bleed to see if it cures the problem.  I don't believe it is a very expensive item to replace.

[jbcollier]

If it only happens after applying the handbrake, it won't be the flex-hose.

[EuropaTC]

Apparently the handbrake wasn't left on whilst the car was in the Garage JB, from the first post it sounds like applying the footbrake caused the seizure. 

My money would be on either

a) general rusting inside the drum, the backplate primarily and perhaps the cylinder not moving causing the shoes to stick in place, or
b) the wheel cylinder piston sticking, although if tapping with a hammer frees it off I'd be less convinced on that one.

If it's the latter I'd just replace both sides with new ones. They are cheap, easily available and IMO not worth the bother of overhauling with a new seal kit.

Brian

[phil]

Yes, its not the handbrake as it wasn't on, it s the footbrake,.
Regards

[BobW]

I had a similar problem with the front calipers, where the brakes would not fully release if I applied them hard. I just needed to clean the wheel cylinders and replace the seals.

[phil]

Update,
Ive removed all the components as suggested, the brake cylinder looks as though its seized, and the back dust shield is split so I have ordered new ones, just realised I need a new bleed kit, but also, what brake fluid should I be using, not sure whats in it at present? Done a search, Dot 4 perhaps?

Phil

[BDA]

Any good DOT 4 fluid would be fine. Castrol is the traditional favorite among "Little British Car" owners but I don't think you really have to limit yourself to that. Now might be a good time to flush the entire system. I think what's more important is NOT to get DOT 5 fluid.

[jbcollier]

Flush the whole system using fresh DOT 3, 4 or 5.1 from a sealed container.  Repeat every two years.

[BobW]

Any good DOT 4 fluid would be fine. Castrol is the traditional favorite among "Little British Car" owners but I don't think you really have to limit yourself to that. Now might be a good time to flush the entire system. I think what's more important is NOT to get DOT 5 fluid.

I've read enough bad stories about the difficulties of switching to DOT 5 that I'd echo this last sentence. DOT 3 was the standard when the Europa was built. It's still available and is what I've always used. I have DOT 4 for newer cars; it has a higher boiling point but you shouldn't need it unless you track your car.

[jbcollier]

Remember that DOT 5 is not comparable with anything else.  DOT 3, 4, 5.1 are compatible.

To change to DOT 5 you must flush everything with alcohol and replace every rubber seal to new.